The combustion of conventional fuels, such as gasoline and diesel, has proven to be essential in a myriad of industrial processes. The combustion of gasoline and diesel, however, may often be accompanied by various drawbacks including increased production costs and increased carbon emissions. In view of the foregoing, recent efforts have focused on alternative fuels with decreased carbon emissions, such as natural gas, to combat the drawbacks of combusting conventional fuels. In addition to providing a “cleaner” alternative fuel with decreased carbon emissions, combusting natural gas may also be relatively safer than combusting conventional fuels. For example, the relatively low density of natural gas allows it to safely and readily dissipate to the atmosphere in the event of a leak. In contrast, conventional fuels (e.g., gasoline and diesel) have a relatively high density and tend to settle or accumulate in the event of a leak, which may present a hazardous and potentially fatal working environment for nearby operators.
While utilizing natural gas may address some of the drawbacks of conventional fuels, the storage and transport of natural gas often prevents it from being viewed as a viable alternative to conventional fuels. Accordingly, natural gas is routinely converted to liquefied natural gas (LNG) via one or more thermodynamic processes. The thermodynamic processes utilized to convert natural gas to LNG may often include circulating one or more refrigerants (e.g., single mixed refrigerants, duel mixed refrigerants, etc.) through a refrigerant cycle. While various thermodynamic processes have been developed for the production of LNG, conventional thermodynamic processes may often fail to produce LNG in quantities sufficient to meet increased demand. Further, the complexity of the conventional thermodynamic processes may often make the production of LNG cost prohibitive and/or impractical. For example, the production of LNG via conventional thermodynamic processes may often require the utilization of additional and/or cost-prohibitive equipment (e.g., compressors, heat exchangers, etc.).
What is needed, then, is an improved, simplified liquefaction system and method for producing liquefied natural gas (LNG).